Greetings fellow freedom loving shooters from deep behind enemy lines in the San Francisco Bay Area. I'M NOT ACTUALLY A CALIFORNIAN. I'm an Oregonian (Medford born) trapped in a socialist utopia, so please don't hate me as a Californian. I'm a free-stater trying to come home.
I am married and have a 3 year old and 1 year old son and we're looking to escape from the PRK. I could really use your advice. My brother lives in Vancouver but has no kids and knows very little about the area beyond what you'd expect a person with no kids to know. We are looking at relocating to the Vancouver area and need help from folks who live there. I need help with two things, finding the right city, and then help with knowing what I need to find in a piece of property if I'm going to shoot on it.
About us:
We're a live and let live family, but do not enjoy the in your face dictatorial progressive attitude of the bay area. I definitely don't want my kids to be politically indoctrinated by any school. I would like schools to offer excellent educational experiences that teach kids to think and reason for themselves. I am a big outdoorsman, who loves to fish, hunt, hike, etc. I'm big into competitive shooting. I would like to have the ability to shoot legally on my own property. My wife wouldn't agree to be more than 20 minutes from schools and some kind of small town. I am a teacher, so I can work anywhere there is a school.
We are considering Woodland, Camas and Hockinson in WA. We are thinking about McMinville and West Salem in Oregon. We would like to be within an hour of Vancouver/Portland.
Here are the priorities we have:
1) Schools for the kids. We want the best schools for our kids that will set them up to succeed in life. High expectations, safe environments and academic experiences are important.
2) Schools as a place to work for me. Obviously, pay, benefits and working conditions matter. I am credentialed to teach pretty much everything.
3) Community matters...parks, farmers market, places to eat, movie theaters, family activities to do within a 30 minute drive or so.
4) Crime...a safe neighborhood is a non negotiable.
5) Taxes/cost of living...lower the better, but I know taxes pay for schools so you have to find a happy medium.
6) If you know what the SF Bay Area is like, I'm looking for pretty much the opposite of that.
For my shooting related questions, how much property do I need to legally shoot? What regulations should I be aware of?
Lastly, and most importantly, is Washington/Oregon on the right track for gun owners, or is there at least hope? I gave money to defeat I-594 and was sad to see it pass, but the gun regulations are almost infinitely better than the hell hole that is California. Would I be making a mistake to move to the PNW? There will be a huge exodus of shooters from California over the next ten years, and OR, WA, NV, AZ, ID, and TX are going to be getting a whole bunch of pro gun voters. We are also open to considering ID and WY, but find the PNW would be less of a culture shock for us than rural Wyoming where Home Depot is 2 hours away at 70 mph.
Thanks for all your help.
I am married and have a 3 year old and 1 year old son and we're looking to escape from the PRK. I could really use your advice. My brother lives in Vancouver but has no kids and knows very little about the area beyond what you'd expect a person with no kids to know. We are looking at relocating to the Vancouver area and need help from folks who live there. I need help with two things, finding the right city, and then help with knowing what I need to find in a piece of property if I'm going to shoot on it.
About us:
We're a live and let live family, but do not enjoy the in your face dictatorial progressive attitude of the bay area. I definitely don't want my kids to be politically indoctrinated by any school. I would like schools to offer excellent educational experiences that teach kids to think and reason for themselves. I am a big outdoorsman, who loves to fish, hunt, hike, etc. I'm big into competitive shooting. I would like to have the ability to shoot legally on my own property. My wife wouldn't agree to be more than 20 minutes from schools and some kind of small town. I am a teacher, so I can work anywhere there is a school.
We are considering Woodland, Camas and Hockinson in WA. We are thinking about McMinville and West Salem in Oregon. We would like to be within an hour of Vancouver/Portland.
Here are the priorities we have:
1) Schools for the kids. We want the best schools for our kids that will set them up to succeed in life. High expectations, safe environments and academic experiences are important.
2) Schools as a place to work for me. Obviously, pay, benefits and working conditions matter. I am credentialed to teach pretty much everything.
3) Community matters...parks, farmers market, places to eat, movie theaters, family activities to do within a 30 minute drive or so.
4) Crime...a safe neighborhood is a non negotiable.
5) Taxes/cost of living...lower the better, but I know taxes pay for schools so you have to find a happy medium.
6) If you know what the SF Bay Area is like, I'm looking for pretty much the opposite of that.
For my shooting related questions, how much property do I need to legally shoot? What regulations should I be aware of?
Lastly, and most importantly, is Washington/Oregon on the right track for gun owners, or is there at least hope? I gave money to defeat I-594 and was sad to see it pass, but the gun regulations are almost infinitely better than the hell hole that is California. Would I be making a mistake to move to the PNW? There will be a huge exodus of shooters from California over the next ten years, and OR, WA, NV, AZ, ID, and TX are going to be getting a whole bunch of pro gun voters. We are also open to considering ID and WY, but find the PNW would be less of a culture shock for us than rural Wyoming where Home Depot is 2 hours away at 70 mph.
Thanks for all your help.
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